30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 2

Day 2: Something you wore today

Sullivan:

One of his favorite hats!

Sully loves beanies/fedoras/baseball caps and knitted animals hats. He has since he was a baby. There was a stretch there that I couldn't even get him to leave the house without him insisting he have a hat on. (Usually they're pretty crazy with mohawks and tassels and what have you) People at my work get a kick out of seeing which crazy hat he'll be wearing. He probably has about 15 different hats that he chooses from right now.

Mommy:

My wedding ring!

It's kind of like my credit card, I never leave home without it. Which is ironic since I'm known to leave my credit card behind somewhere at least once a week. After our first wedding anniversary Shaun upgraded my original engagement diamond to a marquise cut and had my original engagement ring, wedding band and another matching band to the engagement ring all put together in one ring. So its a one-of-a-kind which I love, still after almost 10 years! Its the one thing I ALWAYS wear. Except at home. But that doesn't count.

Please ignore my man knuckles.

Confessions of a toddler

Sully threw a train at me in a fit of anger of being told that he couldn't play the computer. It's not just the computer, throwing something close at hand is his go-to these days when he gets ticked off, and trust me, it doesn't take much.

I calmly told him to go up stairs to cool off. Five minutes later I released him from solitary confinement and we sat and talked on the stairs. I went through our standard check list of questions these days ... "Why did you throw it?", What were you mad about?", "What is a better way to express our anger next time?", "Can throwing things hurt people?", (you get the picture) and - "Do you have anything else to say?"

Now normally this is followed up with an "I'm sorry." (I try really hard not to force him to say sorry.)

He got a really scared look on his face, hung his head down low and said a pitiful "Yeah." Before I could say anything he went right into this panicked ramble of words spewing from his mouth. What I was able to pick up was something along the lines of "I was outside and I pulled the bark off the tree and I scratched at it like this and then I pulled it off more and I broke the branch and I stomped on the bark and I broke the tree and I'm sorry."

It took everything I had in me to hide the giant smile on my face coming out. He was so serious, so scared that he had done something really wrong, and refused to meet my eyes. That is when I know he's scared.

We talked about it, but mainly that I was really proud he told me what he did and how he can tell me anything, even when he's scared. He asked for a hug and my heart just about melted into a puddle on the floor.

There are days I feel certain I could be raising the spawn of a demon - that I have no clue where this child has come from and clearly, my order got mixed with someone else's. And then there are the days that its certain, without a doubt - he is mine. (I use to confess to the most random stuff as a kid. One time, when I was 8, I gave my dad back the Vanilla Ice tape he had bought me and told him I didn't think it was a good idea I listened to it because it had swear words on it. I mean, who does that!? Apparently me and my kid do.)

I've always maintained two things about my child that I hold true to. One, if I can get him to adulthood without him needing any major interventions of therapy, I've done my job well and should get a 'friggen badge. And two; I don't care what paths he chooses to follow in life (okay so obviously no roads of destruction to Druggie Ave. or Alcoholville - I've seen one too many episodes of Intervention to know how those kids end up), who he chooses to love or what he wants to become, so long as he's a good person and does right by other people, but most importantly, right by himself.

I think he's well on that track.

And don't worry Sully - I was always a really crappy liar too. I still am.

Doubt

For all the times I feel like I'm getting it wrong ...

There are nights like tonight that I know I'm getting it right.

Wordless Wednesday

30 day photo challenge

I've seen a couple different "30 Day Photo Challenges" floating around on the blogs I read - 3 different version to be exact, that I know of. I'm sure there are more. I thought it would be fun for Sully and I do to it together! We'll choose from one of those three "Challenge" versions that I liked best that I think will be easiest for Sully to do. So basically what I'm saying is we're making up our own.

I thought it would be fun to do it with him - maybe gain some insight as to how he sees his world through photography. Learn a little bit more about him in a different way. Give us a goal to work on through the day. I won't answer the questions for him, take his photos, or edit anything for him. I'll just help him with some gentle guidance to explain what we're doing - well that's the plan anyways. So ....

Day 1 - Self portrait and 10 facts about yourself:

Sullivan:

Your favorite food: Pizza

Your favorite Color: Green

Your favorite sport: Football and hockey

Your favorite show: Pink Panther

What do you want to be when you grow up? A race car driver.

Your favorite book: Bark George!

What you like to do with Mommy: Go to the park.

What you like to do with Daddy: Play hockey.

Your favorite drink: Coffee milk with cream (Milk mixed with flavored coffee creamer and topped with whipped cream)

Your favorite song: Home (By Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros) And can I just say I love this kid? He could have easily said Itsy Bitsy Spider or Bingo or something but his answer was that! He is most definitely my child.

Mommy:

Your favorite food: Sushi & pizza. Just not together.

Your favorite color: Green

Your favorite sport: Does shopping qualify as a sport?

Your favorite show: Of all time, Absolutely Fabulous

What do you want to be when you grow up? I'm still trying to figure that out. I love what I do now. I would love to go back to school for Management in Non-Profit in ECE. Or own a pony farm.

Your favorite book: Dress your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris

What you like to do with Sully: Laugh

Fun facts: I've been a vegetarian for 20 years, although nobody else in my family is! And I never take myself very seriously, note above.

Your favorite drink: Unsweetened Ice Tea

Your favorite song: Currently, Adele's "One and Only" - but ask me again tomorrow and I'm sure it'll be different. I've got an extensive, eclectic bank of music I listen to.

Bugaboo's - Wasting Food

I HATE wasting food. Its a personal bugaboo of mine. I've probably seen one too many commercials about starving children. I've been known to throw around the whole there-are-kids-in-Africa schpeel at my own table.

I never know what to do with the leftover bits and parts at the bottoms of cereal boxes, cracker boxes or pretzel or dried fruit bags that never seem to be quite enough to make a snack out of, but more than just crumbs. So I've started dumping them all into one giant bag and have made our own trail mix of sorts. All those little pieces have added up to a nice size bag of snack mix! And when it gets empty is usually time to dump a little more bits-and-pieces of something into the mix, so its always changing, which Sully loves.

I love it. Its healthy (cheerios, dried bananas, goldfish crackers, pretzel bits, whole wheat cracker bits) and has been a wonderful grab and go snack for the car or walks (dump a cup full into a small baggie or container) that has cost us nothing extra than what we already have on hand.

I love being resourceful sometimes!

Smorgasbord

In no real particular order ...

• We FINALLY got a jogger to replace the one that took a dive into the duck pond last year while Shaun and I were away in Mexico, no thanks to a little autistic boy and his oh-so-attentive parents. (No, Sully was not inside of it, thank the stars.) I've been getting by with either our heavy duty umbrella stroller (our Kooper by Joovy) or having him walk - but it just wasn't cutting it anymore since we've been spending so much time walking. I'm pretty sure Shaun thinks I'm a freak for not wanting to use our duck poop stroller, but I finally put my foot down and scored an awesome deal on this gently used Joovy 360 to replace it. Yay! Because I couldn't stomach paying full price for another one. I love it.

• That would be my kid throwing a uber tantrum at the park the other day screaming such gems as "I CAN'T DO IT I TOLD YOU I DON'T HAVE ANY LEGS!" and other greatest hits because it was time to go. Awesome.

• For the first time, he refused to sit still in a movie. We took him to see The Secret World of Arrietty. As luck would have it (okay dumb luck because I gave it to him) he pounded the icee I got him in record time, ate a handful of M&M's the lady at the snack bar gave him (curse you!) and then proceeded to take his shoes and socks off, jump in his seat, sing and tell loud secrets. Needless to say I took that as our cue to leave. We played in the lobby while Shaun finished the movie. Figured somebody should.

• Channeling his inner Steve Urkel after nap.

• At the doctors, AGAIN. This time our lovely parting gift was a soar throat, cold and two mild ear infections. Kids are walking germ factories, I swear. I won't lie though, I love the cuddles. The doctors office is the only time he's ever still.

• Playing cars. He has HUNDREDS of matchbox cars and he gives me the rinkiest, dinkiest one he can find. Don't let my giant man sized hand fool you.

• Yeh. I've got nothing.

• We've joined the muffin tin food movement. When I don't have a tin handy and clean, I just put whatever left over cupcake inserts I have on a plate and put his food in that. What the heck is it about feeding them lunch this way that gets them to eat it every time? (Pears, edamame beans, rice crackers and cheese.)